What to include in a delivery note
A delivery note needs 8 things on it to do its job, from the delivery note number at the top to the received by (signature) at the bottom. Miss one and the buyer's accounts team will park the document until someone fills the gap.
The 8-point checklist
Think of the delivery note as evidence that may be read months later by someone who was not there: an accountant, an auditor, a new employee. The 8 fields are what that reader needs to reconstruct the deal.
- Delivery note number. Ties the shipment to the order and the invoice for a three-way match. Example: DN-5570
- Issue date. Starts the clock for validity, delivery and payment terms; for invoices it usually sets the tax point. Example: 18 September 2026
- Seller name, address and contact. Identifies who is supplying and who to contact about the document. Example: Northgate Joinery Ltd, 14 Mill Lane, Leeds LS1 4AB, accounts@northgatejoinery.co.uk
- Buyer name, address and contact. Identifies who is ordering or paying; on invoices the legal entity name matters for tax. Example: Harbour Café Ltd, 3 Quay Street, Bristol BS1 6XN
- Buyer's PO reference. Without it the buyer's accounts payable cannot match the document to an authorised order and will park it. Example: Your PO: PO-2026-0142
- Items and quantities shipped. What is physically in the delivery; prices are usually omitted so the note can be handed to warehouse staff. Example: 12 × oak worktop 3 m — 12 shipped, 0 backordered
- Ship-to address. Often different from the billing address; the delivery note and PO must agree on it. Example: Deliver to: Unit 7, Riverside Industrial Estate, Bristol BS2 0QT
- Received by (signature). Turns the delivery note into proof of receipt; unsigned it proves only dispatch. Example: Received in good condition — signed J. Patel, 30/09/2026
Numbering
The number is the field that connects the delivery note to everything else. Numbered and cross-referenced to the PO and the invoice so a three-way match (ordered, received, billed) is possible.
What it does in the accounts
Accounting treatment: the goods-received record that lets accounts payable approve the invoice. The validity or lifetime of the document, a record of one shipment; it does not expire, follows from that role.
The mistake to avoid
Watch for one error above all: shipping without one, which leaves no independent proof of what was delivered when a short delivery is disputed. It is usually a template problem, so fix the template rather than the individual document.
Make a delivery note now with the Purchase Order Generator; it carries every one of the 8 fields on this list and runs in your browser.
Compare it with the documents it is most often confused with: Delivery note vs invoice, Purchase order vs delivery note, Delivery note vs receipt.